Page 12 of Dirty Secrets

“You’d be okay with someone fucking her?” I snorted.

“It could’ve been me, but you guys didn’t like that. At least I wouldn’t have hurt or used her,” Zavier huffed, barely moving when I shoved him. “What? You think she’s going to just be that sweet kid forever? She’s not, Reid. She’s a twenty-one-year-old adult with feelings and insecurities. Maybe I should’ve just?—”

“Don’t you finish that sentence,” I warned in a low voice, scruffing the front of his shirt. “She’s too damn good for you.”

“You think I don’t know that? The thing is, I promised you I’d leave her alone when she was a teenager. I’d hoped she’d find someone who deserved her. The problem is, no one can get near her because of us. You know what?” he scowled as he grabbed my wrists and shoved my hands off him. “I’m going to help her find someone.”

“Who the fuck do you know that you think would be good for her, hmm? Ryder Donovan, the manwhore porn star, who can’t stay sober long enough to stay out of rehab? Oh! Maybe she’d like bad boy Zane Evans, the son of Satan himself,” I spat, the thought of her being intimate with anyone making me want to put my fist through Zavier’s face. “Face it, we don’t know anyone that would be good to her. Any of the guys around here would brag about it and embarrass her.”

“Date her yourself then since you’re so damn worried,” he bit out, giving Logan a dirty look. “Why are you standing out here worried about our conversation? Go check on her. You’re her best friend, right?”

Logan mirrored his glare, shaking his head. “Don't be a prick just because you’ve got blue balls. She likes her space when she’s mad.”

“You mean you like giving her space when she’s mad,” he said bitterly, turning and stalking back out the door without another word.

“What the actual fuck happened this morning?” Logan asked me slowly, and I honestly didn’t have an answer for him. Raven had been grating on my nerves for months with her mood swings, and it didn’t help when me and the guys argued on top of it.

Things had been tense ever since we’d had it out over her fighting, and I had no idea how to fix it.

“I don’t know. You go hang with Raven, I’ll go after Lopez,” I replied as I grabbed my keys. “See if you can talk to her and find out what’s bothering her. She’s more likely to talk to you than me.”

I didn’t take offense to that either. Logan had always been her best friend, I wouldn’t have even known her if I hadn’t become friends with Josh, so it wasn’t a surprise that they were closer.

She seemed to open up to Zavier a lot too, but he had that effect on people.

I headed outside and climbed into my car, driving in the direction of Ashburn Valley and finding Zavier walking along the side of the road. He barely looked at me as I pulled over in front of him and he climbed in, his voice flat. “Thanks.”

“All good. Beer?”

“Beer,” he confirmed, not questioning me in the slightest.

Guy fights were definitely easier to deal with.

CHAPTER THREE

LOGAN

“Rae?” I called out as I knocked on her bedroom door, cracking it open and almost losing my nose as she threw something at the door to slam it shut again. “Jesus, what did that prick do? I’m team Raven, stand down.”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” she said firmly, and I risked it as I opened the door to step inside.

“Good, me either.” I closed the door and walked closer, jumping on the bed beside her and jostling her. A smile tugged at her lips as she tried to stay mad but failed.

“Fuck off. I can’t be mad at you.”

“That’s probably why I’m the one that was left to knock on your door while the other two fucked off to argue else where,” I chuckled, not giving her a chance to escape as I wrapped my arms around her tightly to cuddle her. “I can’t believe you have Cruz lying to me.”

“Did you wash the skank off, or am I getting chlamydia right now?” she deadpanned, sinking into my hold anyway.

“C’mon, I wouldn’t do that to you,” I tsked. “Are you still mad at me about bringing her home?”

She sighed, snuggling closer. She’d been doing that a lot lately.

I mean, we’d always snuggled, but I swore she buried her face in my neck now to fucking inhale me.

I ran my hand up the back of her shirt to draw patterns against her warm skin, loving how she sank even further into me somehow.

“I’m frustrated, not mad.”